John Schevenius, age 92, beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great grandfather, faithful servant and child of God, went home to be with his Lord and Savior on December 4th. He was much loved by his family and respected by all who knew him. He served the Lord faithfully all his life, with dedication, grace and integrity. He was preceded in death by parents Carl and Alice (nee Schollert) Schevenius.
After a stint in the Army-AirForce, including part of the occupation in Germany after WW II, John went to school at the University of Minnesota to study engineering. There, in Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, he met and later married, Ruth Amstutz, daughter of missionaries to India. After graduating, he worked with the Minnesota Department of Transportation. He also pastored a Methodist Church in Castle Rock before he and his wife became missionaries to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in southern Africa under the United Methodist Church. There John built hospitals, churches, schools, homes, dormitories and many other buildings on the various mission stations and district centers, as well as maintaining electricity and water supplies. He was also school principal and, most importantly, head of evangelism. He also built a secondary school in Maun, Botswana. In addition, he and Ruth sponsored several African “children,” giving them the opportunity for advanced education, including college degrees in the United States (one in England).
Eventually, war in Rhodesia made travel dangerous and John’s work as well. In 1975, he returned to Minnesota with his wife and the children who were still with them (independence came in 1980). He went back to school and then worked at General Mills for many years before a late retirement. During that time, he made numerous short trips back to (now) Zimbabwe to help rebuild the missions after the war. He was also active in the churches Asbury and then Normandale Hylands UMC, CTI (Compatible Technology International which provided practical agriculture machinery, etc., to third world countries), and Prison Fellowship (bringing the gospel, aid and hope to those in our prison system). Always he served God and cared for his family.
He leaves his loving wife, Ruth, children Wesley, Jean, Ann (Steve), David (Susan) and Elizabeth (Kirk), 11 grandchildren, 3 great-grandchildren, and sister Bergliot Schevenius. The good news is that the parting is only temporary. We will all see him again in heaven one day soon.
Visitation at 10 AM, funeral at 11 AM, Monday, Dec. 10th, at Normandale Hylands UMC, 9920 Normandale Blvd,. Bloomington MN.
Published on December 9, 2018
